# So where does one find a mushroom expert? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 29, 2009, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691 "2009-04-29T01:51:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/1 "2009-04-29T01:51:30Z")
Last summer, while I was lurking about the Dope, I came across a thread about a very strange fungus called “Chicken of the Woods”. According to the Dopers posting therein, said [del]alien brain[/del] [del]chicken[/del] mushroom is not only edible, but highly delicious. Imagine my delighted suprise when I found a similar specimen growing in my backyard a short time later. I was curious to see what the fabled Sulfer Shelf really tasted like, but first, I had to be completely sure that this was Laetiporus sulphureus, and not some vile imposter. Not that there are a ton of deadly mushrooms that look like CotW, but I had been properly drilled on “Don’t ever, ever, ever eat a mushroom, or look at a mushroom, or be in the same room as a mushroom, unless you’ve got a team of certified mycologists standing by.” I needed to find a mushroom expert. I went to my friend the biology teacher. “I’ve got this mushroom growing in my yard. Can I eat it?” Bio Teacher sighed. “Chicken of the woods is edible, and highly delicious, and you appear to have a classic case of it growing in your yard. But don’t eat anything until you’ve had a real mushroom expert check it out.” “But where would I find a mushroom expert?” “Search me.” I had no further success in the matter, and in time the presumed chicken of the woods was cut down in an untimely lawn mower incident. (Yes, I know CotW grows on trees). But in the event of it making a further appearance, I must know: where, exactly, does one find a mushroom expert? Do they advertise in the Yellow Pages? Or do you have to be living next door to Professor Shiitake G. Funguy, PhD? What about wacky old neighbors who collect mushrooms as a hobby, do they count? And, honestly, is there any Big Bad Evil Fungus that can reasonably be mistaken for chicken of the woods? ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/2 "2009-04-29T02:08:08Z")
We have one who sells wild collected 'shrooms at our local Farmer’s Market. He seems expert. (This is Oak Park IL if you are Chicago area.) ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/3 "2009-04-29T03:04:44Z")
> [@](#): > > So where does one find a mushroom expert? Track one down by following the spore. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/4 "2009-04-29T03:35:38Z")
I’m no expert, but have been told by one that COTW falls squarely into the desirable category of easy to identify with no nasty ones of similar appearance. I collect it and eat it whenever I find one in good condition. The flavor is good, though not enough to make it a rival to morels and chanterelles. But I’ll stop short of recommending that you do the same without consulting that expert. FWIW, my expert was a college professor (of economics, I think) who had made a 25-year hobby of mycology. ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/5 "2009-04-29T03:59:16Z")
[Mushrooms Demystified](http://books.google.com/books?id=vY8FXXrlHFMC&dq=David+Arora&printsec=frontcover&source=an&hl=en#PPP1,M1) is the best book I know about to help you learn to become your own mushroom expert. It’s focused on California, but quite useful elsewhere. Look up whether there’s a mycological society in your area. That’s where you’ll find the amateur 'shroomers who will be happy to share their knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/6 "2009-04-29T04:00:37Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > Track one down by following the spore. That’s much better than the _Matango_ reference I was going to make. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/7 "2009-04-29T17:26:52Z")
Steve of [thesneeze.com](http://thesneeze.com) has a Chicken of the Woods that grows on a tree in his yard every year. He calls it a “tree brain.” Eventually he ends up eating it. [http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000700.php](http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000700.php) ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/8 "2009-04-29T20:05:12Z")
A trail guide at a park once defined a mushroom expert as someone who hadn’t killed him by eating the wrong one… yet. Most areas have clubs for mushroom hunters. I’ve often though it would be fun to join one, even if only as an excuse to do more hiking. In any event, some of the grizzled veterans of those groups ought to be good resources. ---
**Author:** ![lizardling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f4b2a3/32.png) [@lizardling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lizardling)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2009, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/9 "2009-04-29T23:22:49Z")
That, or check your local university/institute of higher education to see if they have a mycology staff in the biology department. One of my former coworkers got out of the public sector to become a mycologist on staff at the local U. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/10 "2009-04-30T13:48:46Z")
Didn’t **mangetout** do this on his site? ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/11 "2009-04-30T15:59:54Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > We have one who sells wild collected 'shrooms at our local Farmer’s Market. He seems expert. (This is Oak Park IL if you are Chicago area.) Really? I hit the Farmer’s Market on Oak Park almost every Saturday when it’s open and I’ve never seen him. I usually get there late though, does he bug out early? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/12 "2009-04-30T21:43:39Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > Didn’t **mangetout** do this on his site? Never yet been lucky enough to find chicken of the woods - I keep looking though. **Xema** is right though - CotW is almost impossible to mistake for anything harmful - however, you should not consume it if you find it growing on a yew tree, as it can contain some of the tree’s toxins, in this instance. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/13 "2009-05-01T00:16:20Z")
Call your local poison control center and ask for a reference, since they almost certainly have a mycologist on call to help in poisoning cases. My old boss was an amateur - though published - mycologist and was often consulted. He was also a mathematician, an electrical engineer, and a respected poet in his spare time. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/14 "2009-05-01T01:24:10Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Never yet been lucky enough to find chicken of the woods - I keep looking though. > > **Xema** is right though - CotW is almost impossible to mistake for anything harmful - however, you should not consume it if you find it growing on a yew tree, as it can contain some of the tree’s toxins, in this instance. Oh right, I got you mixed up with the other site I’ve read about eating stuff that not everyone would eat, [Steve, Don’t Eat It](http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000700.php) on The Sneeze. I kind of want to write to him and tell him how to make _natto_ edible. It involves a raw egg. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/15 "2009-05-01T03:30:51Z")
Remember…look for an OLD mushroom expert. There’s no guarantee a young one just hasn’t been wrong _yet_… ---
**Author:** ![Satellite\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Satellite\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satellite_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/16 "2009-05-01T04:21:48Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > So where does one find a mushroom expert? Just go to a party, and look for the fungii. [d&r] **S^G** [/d&r] ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/17 "2009-05-01T04:35:02Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Really? I hit the Farmer’s Market on Oak Park almost every Saturday when it’s open and I’ve never seen him. > > I usually get there late though, does he bug out early? I think he does. He sets up sort of attached to the booth midway on the north side with all the apple and potato varieties in the bins. (You miss the donuts if you are too late!) Another possible approach for the op is to contact a local mushroom club. [Here’s a state by state list](http://www.mushroomthejournal.com/startingout/clubs.html) with links. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/18 "2009-05-01T04:44:05Z")
[Man, 82, dies from eating wild mushrooms](http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-poison12-2009mar12,0,3482791.story) > [@](#): > > “You couldn’t tell him anything because he’d been so lucky for 82 years,” [his wife] said. > [@](#): > > “He said they were the best mushrooms he had ever eaten.” I guess you could say they were mushrooms to die for! ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/19 "2009-05-01T07:12:11Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > [Man, 82, dies from eating wild mushrooms](http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-poison12-2009mar12,0,3482791.story) Wow, that dude’s from Santa Barbara. I got kind of excited from this thread, but we don’t have a mushroom club here. I used to have a friend who picked chanterelles and he was going to take me but we failed to hook up. I was told that chanterelles are fairly unique looking, but I guess it ain’t the risk. I see what looks like Chicken of the Woods fairly often. It sure doesn’t look like it’s edible. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691/20 "2009-05-01T11:37:23Z")
Here is a thread on mushrooms I started a while back,doesn’t answer the OP, just thought ya’ll might wanna read it. guess it would help if I add the link > **[Destroying Angel and Other Names](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=417851)** > > Destroying Angel Trumpet of Death Angel of Death Dead Man’s fingers Stinkhorn Poison Pie The Devil’s Urn Peckerhead Witch’s Hat Death Cap Autumn Skullcap Satan’s Mushroom These could all be bad horror flicks, but they are… types of... [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-where-does-one-find-a-mushroom-expert/494691.md?page=2)